Nutrition Facts

The Story

For the real scoop on Three Twins’ flavors, we went straight to the source: Founding Twin Neal Gottlieb. Here’s what he says about our classic, Madagascar Vanilla.

Madagascar Vanilla is our vanilla, but it is far from just vanilla. No, no, no. There is nothing plain or boring or decidedly mediocre about this vanilla. But, before we get to vanilla, let's have a look at Three Twins Ice Cream's base.

Our base is so simple and so good. We use milk, cream, sugar and eggs. And that's it. You won't find any corn syrup or seaweed derivatives here, or anything else ridiculous, for that matter. We use those four ingredients and only those four ingredients, because we believe that those are the only ingredients an ice cream base should ever have.

The Madagascar Vanilla that we use is certified organic and supplied by the good folks of Nielsen-Massey. That is a vanilla company – not a chemical company, as is so often the case. You might recognize Nielsen-Massey as the fancy-schmancy vanilla that's sold in the Williams-Sonoma catalog, where it comes in little bottles and costs substantial sums of money. It is truly great vanilla that never disappoints.

We’re not sure how vanilla got a reputation as the Plain Jane of the food world. Vanilla is no simple thing. In fact, it contains more than 2,000 individual flavor compounds that contribute to that wondrous flavor. 2,000. That's more friends than you have on Facebook. A lot more.
We flavor our Madagascar Vanilla based on taste, not cost. This important distinction is, sadly, often lacking in the food business – organic foods or otherwise. This means that we not only buy the good stuff from Nielsen-Massey, but that we also use lots of it.

As the guy who came up with the recipe, I, of course, love the taste of our Madagascar Vanilla. The trait that I am most proud of, however, is its flawless texture. I'm really not much of a braggart, but our vanilla is so impossibly smooth and delightful that it still leaves me in awe.
Fun fact: When I opened the first Three Twins scoop shop in 2005, I would change the name of my vanilla ice cream on a whim, even though the recipe never changed. Its first name was Mmmm Vanilla. It was sometimes the alliterative Very Vanilla. At other times, it was Mad Vanilla. It took some months before I settled into Madagascar Vanilla.

Onyx Asset Advisors, LLC has been formally engaged as the exclusive sales agent in an offering that includes, in whole or in part, all or substantially all, of the Three Twins Organic, Inc assets, including its Intellectual Property (brands, trademarks, etc.,) as well as Operating Machinery & Equipment and the Real Property (identified as 816 Michigan Ave, Sheboygan, WI). There is no inventory included in the offering. A Non-Disclosure Agreement will be required to receive additional information on the offering. To obtain a copy of the Non-Disclosure Agreement or with questions specifically to the sale process please visit the sales page on our website at: http://www.thinkonyx.com/sale/three-twins-ice-cream/

Dear Three Twins Community,

It is with sadness that I announce that Three Twins Ice Cream is ceasing operations as of Friday April 17, 2020.

When I started Three Twins as a single ice cream shop in 2005, my goal was to make great organic ice cream that was affordable and accessible, while also giving back. Without any real understanding of business and without a single employee (I couldn’t afford anyone but myself) I set out to make something special.

Three Twins quickly became a Bay Area favorite at our scoops shops, farmers’ markets, and a handful of local grocery stores to which we sold hand-packed pints.

We had many successes in those early years, picking up new accounts, launching many firsts in organic, getting a fair amount of media attention, and growing rapidly. However, the grocery business proved to be brutal.

We were always working towards a scale where we could have sustained profitability, but in more recent years we saw the business contract and margins get squeezed further.

The result was that the business had been unsustainable and a capital infusion was necessary, but proved to be impossible. Any chances of a last minute solution were erased by the pandemic. As a result, we have no choice but to shut down the business. It is possible that somebody will revive the brand in the future, but unknown how likely that may be.

Thank you for all of your support over the years. It means more than I can possibly express in words. It’s been quite the journey. Collectively we brought millions and millions of servings of joy to customers around the world, showed that you don’t need to sacrifice to eat organic, and funded the purchase of 12,000 acres of land through Ice Cream For Acres.

One of the best things about being an entrepreneur is the incredible people that you get to work with. I was very fortunate on this front. We had something truly special here at Three Twins and now many of those talented individuals are looking for new jobs. In California it’s most of our corporate staff (including myself) and in Wisconsin it’s a good portion of our factory staff, including management, looking for new roles.

I have always lived by the philosophy that it is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. While this is a heartbreaking end to a 15 year (and two day) dream, I feel entirely lucky to have had this opportunity. Thank you for sharing it with me.

My best,

Neal Gottlieb
Founding Twin and CEO
Three Twins Ice Cream
2005 – 2020

P.S. I can be reached at neal.h.gottlieb (at) g mail going forward and will be happy to get you in touch with the talented pool of former employees who are looking for their next great role.